Welcome to Taos County Taos (pronounced /ˈtaʊs/) is a town in Taos County in the north-central region of New Mexico. In New Mexico, a municipality may call itself a village, town, or city (see New Mexico local government). Taos calls itself the "Town of Taos" and was incorporated as such in 1934. As of the 2000 census, its population was 4,700. Other nearby communities include Ranchos de Taos, Canyon, Ranchitos, and El Prado.
Being located close to Taos Pueblo, the Native American village and tribe from which it takes its name, it is also the county seat of Taos County. The name also refers to the nearby ski resort of Taos Ski Valley. The English name Taos derives from the native Taos language meaning "place of red willows".
History Of Taos
Taos was established c. 1615 as Fernandez de Taos, following the Spanish conquest of the Indian Pueblo villages. Initially, relations of the Spanish settlers with Taos Pueblo were amicable,[1] but resentment of meddling by missionaries, and demands by encomenderos for tribute, led to a revolt in 1640; Taos Indians killed their priest and a number of Spanish settlers, and fled the pueblo, not returning until 1661.[2]
In 1680, Taos Pueblo joined the widespread Pueblo Revolt. After the Spanish Reconquest of 1692, Taos Pueblo continued armed resistance to the Spanish until 1696, when Governor Diego de Vargas defeated the Indians at Taos Canyon.[2]
During the 1770s, Taos was repeatedly raided by Comanches who lived on the plains of what is now eastern Colorado. Juan Bautista de Anza, governor of the Province of New Mexico, led a successful punitive expedition in 1779 against the Comanches.
After the U.S. takeover of New Mexico in 1847, Hispanics and American Indians in Taos staged a rebellion, known as the Taos Revolt, in which the newly appointed U.S. Governor, Charles Bent, was killed.
Beginning in 1899, artists began to settle in Taos, forming the Taos Society of Artists in 1915. In time, the Taos art colony developed. Many paintings were made of local scenes, especially of Taos Pueblo and activities there, as the artists often modelled Native Americans from the pueblo in their paintings. Some of the artists' studios have been preserved and may be viewed by visitors to Taos. These include the Ernest L. Blumenschein House. Influential Taos artists include Nicolai Fechin, R. C. Gorman, and Agnes Martin.
Taos Plaza is, for historical reasons, one of the few places in the country where the American flag may properly be displayed continuously (both day and night). This derives from the time of the American Civil War when Confederate sympathizers in the area attempted to remove the flag. Kit Carson sought to discourage this activity by having guards surround the area.
Historical places and tourism
Taos is home to more than a dozen sites on the National Register of Historic Places. These include the Ernest L. Blumenschein House, the Kit Carson House, the Mabel Dodge Luhan House, the Governor Charles Bent house, and the Taos Inn. Three miles north of Taos is the Taos Pueblo; further north is the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. Just outside of Taos in Ranchitos is the Martinez Hacienda, the home turned museum of the late Padre Antonio José Martínez. South of Taos is the Ranchos de Taos Plaza with the San Francisco de Asis Mission Church; further south is the Picuris Pueblo.
Twenty miles northwest is the D. H. Lawrence Ranch (originally known as the Kiowa Ranch and now owned by the University of New Mexico), the home of the English novelist in the 1920s. It is believed that his ashes are buried there at the D. H. Lawrence Memorial. Another novelist who lived for a while in Taos was Alexander Trocchi.
Other tourist attractions include Taos Ski Valley.
AdminonMonday 04 October 2010 - 09:30:17 Comments are turned off for this item
The Living Church San Francisco de Asis Mission Church is located on the plaza in Ranchos de Taos, historic district, about four miles southwest of the town of Taos, New Mexico.
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JoeonThursday 02 December 2010 - 13:44:05 Read/Post Comment: 0
San Francisco de Asís Mission Church 1772 San Francisco de Asís Mission Church, c. 1772, is one of the best known and most photographed churches in New Mexico. The Spanish Colonial adobe building has twin bell towers and an arched portal entrance that overlooks an enclosed courtyard. The interior has a large carved reredos (altar screen) divided into painted panels, a ceiling of vigas (beams) that rest on elaborately carved double brackets and a traditional choir loft. San Francisco de Asís Mission is an active parish.
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AdminonMonday 29 November 2010 - 11:19:10 Read/Post Comment: 0
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